The Company

The Company

* Designates Original Cast Member/Role Development

Artistic Directors, Creators & Producers

Zach Morris(Third Rail Projects’ Co-Artistic Director/Performer) is a Bessie Award-winning choreographer, director, visual artist and Co-Artistic Director of Third Rail Projects. He is also the organizer and moderator of the NYC Dance Film Lab, a Movement Research teaching artist, an adjunct faculty member of the Florida State University School of Dance, and a professor of Shakespeare at Manhattanville College. He has previously served as the Co-Creator and Co-Director of the Westbeth New Works Program and as the Inter/National Program Associate at Dance Theater Workshop. Zach has a BFA in Directing from Carnegie Mellon University.

Tom Pearson(Third Rail Projects’ Co-Artistic Director/Performer/White Rabbit*) is a Bessie Award-winning choreographer, director, performer, visual artist, and Co-Artistic Director of Third Rail Projects. He is an adjunct faculty member of the Florida State University School of Dance and has choreographed, performed, lectured and taught for more than a decade in New York and beyond. He is also a writer whose work has been published in Dance Magazine, Time Out New York Kids, Dance Spirit and as the Editor of the Public Theater’s Native Theater Journal online and in filmed interviews for NYU’s Hemispheric Institute. Tom holds an MA in Performance Studies from New York University.

Jennine Willett (Third Rail Projects’ Co-Artistic Director/Performer/White Queen*) is a Bessie Award-winning choreographer, director, performer, visual artist and Co-Artistic Director of Third Rail Projects. She has performed, choreographed, and taught nationally and internationally since 1997, working in eastern Europe for several years prior to moving to New York and co-founding Third Rail Projects. She spearheads the company’s educational offerings, both in-house and in partnership with colleges, universities, and various arts organizations. Jennine holds a Master of Fine Arts Degree from Florida State University.

Collaborating Artists, Performers, and Production

NJ Agwuna (Assistant Stage Manager Swing) is a freelance director and film PA, hailing from the ‘burbs of central Maryland. Performing from a young age, NJ found herself drawn more to the directorial and technical side of theatre. In 2009 she pursued her passion for theatre at Binghamton University, where she majored in Theatre Directing and Cinema. A recent resident of NYC, some of NJ’s credits include Amazing Spider-Man 2,Alondra was Here (Stage Manager), Bodega Bay (Asst. Stage Manager), Alice In Wonderland (Stage Manager), Today’s Special, Boardwalk Empire, Elementary, The Following, Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More (Stage Management Sub), and Redhead Randy; Anti-Bullying Film. In her spare time she coaches auditioning techniques for young actors, rehearses with her musical improv troupe, works on devising new pieces, and assists with casting at various casting agencies. www.njagwuna.com

Stephanie Armitage (Assistant Stage Manager Swing) is a freelance stage manager. Recent credits include Take What is Yours (59E59), The Pirates of Finance (NYMF), As You Like It (NYU TIsch at the Atlantic Theater), and Deployed (NYMF). She is a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College.

Rachel I. Berman (Performer) is a dancer and performer. In addition to Third Rail Projects, Rachel works with choreographers Sarah Michelson and Rebecca Warner. Rachel studied at the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance and at the University of California, Irvine where she received her BFA in performance and choreography. Rachel was grown on Maui. She lives in Brooklyn.

Carly Berrett-Plagianakos (Third Rail Projects’ Social Media Manager/Performer) is originally from Salt Lake City, Utah. She received her MFA in dance from the University of Utah and her BA from Brigham Young University. She was an assistant professor at the University of Utah Department of Modern Dance from 2006-2009. Carly has been fortunate enough to work with Gesel Mason, Doug Varone, Kevin Ho, Ching-I Chang, Nico Li, Megan Bascom, Bill Evans, Daniel Nagrin, Stephen Koester, Jose Navas, and performed in the works of Alwin Nikolais, Helen Tamiris, and Glen Tetley. She works as a teaching artist across the five boroughs in New York City in the public schools and at the 92Y. Carly also moonlights as a freelance grant writer and filmmaker.

Lia Bonfilio (Performer) received a BFA in dance from Columbia College Chicago and went on to join both Mordine and Company Dance Theater and Lucky Plush Productions, with whom she danced and toured for three years. She has also performed with Joe Goode Performance Group in San Francisco and Susan Rethorst, Daniela Hoff, Philippa Kaye, and Kathy Wasik in New York. Lia is currently working with Levi Gonzalez and Sina Heiss.

Andrew Broaddus (Performer) is an actor, dancer, musician, and juggler originally from Teaneck, NJ. He graduated from Oberlin College in 2007 and has been performing in New York ever since. Recently he’s been masquerading as a British rockstar in Megan Sipe’s Chocolate Dances and singing music from the Republic of Georgia with the choir Supruli, lead by Carl Linich, including a performance accompanying the silent film Eliso at MoMA’s Georgian film festival.

TJ Burleson (Assistant Stage Manager/Wardrobe) is a native Texan with a BA in Theatre and Linguistics from Rice University. After graduating, he studied at Binghamton University for one year and worked as the Costume Shop Graduate Assistant. In addition to Then She Fell, he does wardrobe and costume work for Ars Nova Theater (Game Play, New Year’s at Ars Nova, Eager to Lose).

Cameron Michael Burns (Production Assistant) is a performer with a BA in Theatre Arts from Marymount Manhattan College. He has performed with Glass Bandits Theater Company, Rady&Bloom, Tenement Street Workshop, Lust & Liberty, and in the New York Fringe Festival. In between acting gigs, Cameron has freelanced as a stagehand, usher, bartender, set dresser, and all-around theatre Swiss Army knife.

Elizabeth Carena (Third Rail Projects’ Managing Director/Performer/Hatter*) is a performing artist and arts administrator. Since 2007, she has served as Third Rail Projects’ Managing Director and has collaborated on and performed in more than a dozen projects with the company. She is a founding member of the NYC rock band Mother Feather, has modeled for VPL and various NYC photographers, and served as Capital Associate at Theatre for a New Audience from 2007-2012. She holds a BA in Theater from Fordham University’s College at Lincoln Center and lives in Brooklyn. www.elizabethcarena.com

Giulia Carotenuto (Performer) is a dance artist and arts administrator hailing originally from Rome, Italy. Since moving to NYC in 2008, she has worked with a variety of artists, including Monica Bill Barnes & Company, Pavel Zustiak (Palissimo), and Douglas Dunn and Dancers. In addition to Third Rail Projects, Giulia is currently a member of the Faye Driscoll Group and the making of Ms. Driscoll’s trilogy-in-progress, Thank You for Coming.

Brittany Crowell (Third Rail Projects Production Manager) is a theater artist and administrator. Brittany has worked as a Producer, Production Manager and Stage Manager with many companies, including: The TRUF, The Bower Group, Tinker’s Collective, Oscar + Lottie, [CENSORED] Collective, and Anthill Productions. Administratively, she has worked as the Management Coordinator at the revitalized Bucks County Playhouse and as Executive Assistant to Producer, Jill Furman. She currently serves as the Managing Director of Crashbox Theater Company.

Alberto Denis (Performer/Lewis Carroll*) has toured the world as a performer and theater technician. He has performed for Arthur Aviles’ Typical Theater and in projects for Doug Elkins, Risa Jaroslow, Palissimo Dance Theater, Dixie Fun Dance Theater, ann and alexx make dances, Marta Renzi, Michael Leleux, Heidi Latsky Dance, Lawrence Goldhuber, Luis Lara Malvacias, JoAnna Mendl Shaw’s Equus Projects, and Mei Yin Ng’s Mei-Be Whatever. He was a featured performer in The Whitney’s Christian Marclay: Festival performance of Prêt-à-Porter, and his own choreography has been produced at Dance Theater Workshop, Danspace Project, Dixon Place, BAAD!, LaGuardia Performing Arts Center and Kinetics Dance Theater in Baltimore. about.me/albertodenis.

Lindsey Dietz-Marchant (Performer) is a freelance dance artist based in NYC since 1998 that has performed with over 30 choreographers, including Palissimo (Pavel Zustiak), Martha Clarke, Kate Weare, Tami Stronach Dance, Doug Elkins, Aszure Barton, Monica Bill Barnes, Ursula Eagly, and Elena Demyanenko. Lindsey’s own choreographic work has toured internationally from Russia to Australia, recent NYC commissions by Danspace Project, Music-Theatre Group, Harkness Dance Center, and Dance New Amsterdam, among others. Lindsey has been commissioned by and taught at Universities and Conservatories such as Bennington, NYU-Tisch School of the Arts, Princeton, Marymount Manhattan College, University of Iowa, University of Michigan, SUNY Purchase, University of New South Wales (Australia) and Chunky Move (Australia). In New York City Lindsey teaches at Movement Research. dietzmarchant.com.

Caitlin Dutton (Performer) is Georgia-raised and a graduate of SUNY Purchase College. She has danced and presented her work nationally and in the UK before settling back in New York City in 2011. Caitlin has had the pleasure of working with choreographers such as Nelly Van Bommel, Laurie Stallings, Richard Alston, Lane Gifford, Regina Nejman, and Jennifer Backhaus. In addition to Third Rail Projects, Caitlin also dances for Amalgamate Dance Company, coordinates/curates various productions, and runs her own dance company, caitlin+dancers. Highlights of where her work has been shown include Dance Theater Workshop(NYLA), Triskelion Arts, the Falchi Building hosted by chashama, the Robin Howard Theatre in London, UK, various public spaces in collaboration with the City of Savannah, GA, and in unconventional NYC spaces in cahoots with the Hoover Dam Collective. caitlinplusdancers.org

Kim Fischer (Performer) is an actor, dancer, and spin instructor from Oakland, California. He moved to New York City in 2007 to study acting at NYU and has been performing in theater, TV and film ever since. He most recently played a rapper/beat boxer in Idris Goodwin’s How We Got On at the Cleveland Playhouse. Theater credits include Fuerza Bruta (Daryl Roth Theater), Romeo and Juliet (Actors Theatre of Louisville), and nightnight (Actors Theatre of Louisville). TV includes One Bad Choice (MTV). He is an alumnus of the Actors Theatre of Louisville apprentice program.

Zhauna Franks (Performer) Originally from Minneapolis, she was a principle company member of the dance-theater company Ballet of the Dolls. Originating nearly 100 roles over 25 years, she also served as Associate Artistic Director for 8 years. She has worn many hats over the span of her artistic career: writing, directing, choreographing, acting, coaching, teaching, and making stuff.She has produced 4 evening length Dance Theater pieces. Her production of Beauty and the Beast won “Best of Fringe- Audience choice.” She has also performed in dozens of regional productions including plays, musicals, Indy films and other strange endeavors. She recently completed a two year run in Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More.

Dana Gal (Assistant Stage Manager Swing) is a freelance stage and event manager currently residing in Brooklyn. She is grateful to have worked with Third Rail Projects since December 2013 on Then She Fell and Roadside Attraction. Dana has worked in Phoenix, the San Francisco Bay Area, and at Williamstown Theatre Festival and Berkshire Theatre Group.

Kelly Garone (Performer) hails from the exotic island of Long, and currently lives in an intentional community of artists in Brooklyn. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Barnard College, where she studied race and gender. She has had the pleasure of studying with the Limón Dance Company, and performing with Young Soon Kim’s White Wave Dance Company, Ben Munisteri Dance Projects, and off-Broadway in The Rocky Horror Show. She has spent the last several years studying sexuality and female orgasm, mapping how it informs the limbic brain, human connectability, and creative expression. She is a certified Qoya teacher and a devout practitioner of the Alexander technique. Through her time spent living abroad in Bologna, she speaks Italian.

Brighid Greene (Performer), a native to the golden state, now lives in Ridgewood, Queens. She performs with Katie Rose McLaughlin and ANIMALS Performance Group and has also worked with directors Katherine Brook and Joshua Gelb and visual artists Liz Glynn and Ryan Frank. In addition to performing, she works on her own creative projects with often collaborators Ben Gansky, Stephanie Gould, and for Bad Nancy. She manages communications at Dance Films Association and champions for dance by serving on the Dance/NYC Junior Committee. Brighid made her way from California to attend Tisch School of the Arts where she graduated with a BFA in Dance, a double major in Religious Studies, and as a recipient of the J.S. Seidman Award. brighidgreene.com

Carolyn Hall (Performer), originally from Los Angeles, is a freelance dancer based in NYC since 1996. She has performed nationally and internationally with numerous choreographers –most recently: Lionel Popkin, Clarinda Mac Low, Ori Flomin, Sally Silvers, and Rebecca Davis. She was awarded a New York Dance and Performance (Bessie) Award for performance in 2002. In addition to her life as a dancer, she is an historical marine ecologist and has been enjoying exploring ways to combine her art and science halves. One way to achieve this is by being on the board of iLAND, the Interdisciplinary Laboratory of Art, Nature, and Dance –check it out: http://www.ilandart.org

Rebecca Kane (Production Assistant) is a freelance stage manager and playwright. She is a graduate of University of Central Florida with a BFA in Stage Management and a minor in Creative Writing. She worked for numerous companies in central Florida, including the Orlando Shakespeare Theater and Orlando International Fringe Festival, and for the Atlantic Theater Company in NYC.

Julia Kelly (Assistant Rehearsal Director/Performer), a Virginia native now hailing from Brooklyn, is a performing artist always and director/choreographer sometimes. She holds a BA in Dance and Theater from Barnard College/Columbia University, where her directing thesis was a Grotowski-informed physical theater adaptation of Alice in Wonderland. Julia has performed in dance, theater, opera and film projects with, among others: Jonathan Riedel, Benn Rasmussen, Andre Zachery, the VIA Dance Collaborative, Daniel Fetecua Soto (Colombia), Geraldine Cardiel (Mexico), Lior Shneior (Israel), Opera Slavica, and the Gallery Players. Julia is an alumna of the Limón Institute’s intensive certificate program and subsequently performed the work of Doris Humphrey, JoséLimón and Anna Sokolow, most recently with the Limón Dance Company in Beijing, China, and at Lincoln Center.

Roxanne Kidd (Performer) is a dancer and teaching artist now residing in Brooklyn. As an Alumna of Florida State University, with her BFA in dance, she teaches performance and dance for the arts education program LeAp. She has also performed in other Third Rail Projects works including Marrow,Yolk, and House No. 17. Roxanne is currently continuing the pursuit of her own artistic endeavors in New York City.

Madison Krekel (Performer) is a freelance dancer and actor who has unlimited interests in the world of art. Dancing since she was three, Madison studied with Ronn Guidi of The Oakland Ballet for much of her youth. In 2010 she earned a BFA in Dance Performance at the University of California, Irvine, where she was a member of the Etude Ensemble led by the renowned Donald McKayle. Now living in New York, Madison has performed works by Alexandra Beller, Alexis Convento, Vanessa Walters, LeeSaar The Company, Palissimo, Mark Lamb Dance, Jodie Gates, Charles Moulton, Alex Ketley, and Ohad Naharin. She has danced in music videos for Rush Midnight and Zola Jesus. Behind the scenes, Madison has worked as a production assistant for Eva Dean’s Bounce at the Prague Fringe Festival (2013) and written dance reviews for OFFOFFOFFF, the online alternative arts magazine. In addition to her work with Third Rail Projects, she is an ASTEP on STAGE! volunteer, a company member of ANIMALS Performance Group, and tours internationally with Young Jean Lee’s Theater Company’s Untitled Feminist Show.

Mary Madsen (Performer) is a freelance dance artist based in New York City since 2003. She grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin and holds a BFA in dance from the University of Milwaukee-WI. Mary currently dances for Jody Oberfelder Dance Projects and the Resonance Collective. Other choreographers she has had the pleasure to work with include: Regina Nejman, John J Zullo, Rebollar Dance Theater (D.C.), Kelly Anderson (Chicago), and Simone Ferro (Milwaukee). Mary also experiments with solo choreography, film creation, and collaborations with music artists namely The Glass Half and Summer Come Yelling. She co-founded the Indie Rock group Jigsaw Soul (’05-’08) and appeared in their music video, Cockroach Hotel.

Kaitlin Marsh (Assistant Stage Manager Swing) is a freelance stage manager and technician newly arrived in New York City. Kaitlin has worked as a stage manager, production assistant and technician with several companies on performances and workshops, including: Tectonic Theatre Project’s work in progress Square Peg Round Hole, the Brooklyn Arts Exchange, the Burgess Meredith Little Theatre, and the Weis Center for the Performing Arts. Kaitlin recently graduated from Bucknell University with a Bachelor of Arts.

Justin Mock (Performer), a native of Pittsburgh, PA, is joyful upon his return to the States after having spent a year as resident artist with Hou Ying Dance Theatre in Beijing. He has also danced with Peridance Contemporary Dance Co., The Merce Cunningham Trust, and Hubbard Street 2 since graduating college in 2011. Justin holds a degree in Theatre Arts from Point Park University.

Rebekah Morin (Performer/Red Queen*) has been performing and creating dance works in New York City and abroad since 1998, both as an independent artist and with Jody Oberfelder Dance Projects (2001-2011) and The Equus Projects (2007-2012). Rebekah holds a BA in Dance from Connecticut College and is a registered yoga teacher with Laughing Lotus. Through The Equus Projects, she has trained with some of the finest natural horsemanship professionals in the world. She has performed in the dance films of JODP, The Equus Projects, Amy Greenfield, Mantis Dance, Becky Radway Dance Projects, and with Third Rail Projects since 2010.

Marissa Nielsen-Pincus (Third Rail Projects’ Associate Artistic Director/Rehearsal Director/Performer/Alice*) has worked in a wide variety of contexts including site specific performance, aerial dance, interactive media, and film. She is a founding member of Third Rail Projects since 2001. Her own choreography has been presented at The World Financial Center, Chashama, and La Mama E.T.C., and her dance film, BeWing. Marissa studied contemporary dance at the London Studio Centre, is a certified Somatic Movement Educator through the School for Body Mind Centering®, and teaches yoga and anatomy around NYC.

Tara O’Con (Performer/Alice*) Originally from Long Island, Tara graduated with honors from Roger Williams University in 2003, and has been making and performing work in NYC ever since. She has been a collaborative member of Third Rail Projects since 2006, and had the great pleasure of originating one of the Alice roles in Then She Fell. Her own work has been commissioned and presented at Dance Theater Workshop (Fresh Tracks Residency 2007), The Chocolate Factory Theater (2008 and 2010), Danspace Project (2009), Lower Manhattan Cultural Council’s River To River Festival (2012), and New York Live Arts (Studio Series 2013). She was a 2012-2014 Movement Research Artist in Residence. Tara is also a freelance user experience design strategist, making peoples’ online web experiences less confusing and more personable. taraoconexperiencedesign.com

Joshua Reaver (Third Rail Projects’ Marketing Associate/Performer), a graduate of Florida State University with a BFA in Dance, has been performing as the White Rabbit since March 2013 and collaborates with Third Rail Projects on various other performances. Since moving to New York in 2011, Joshua has had the opportunity to perform with Dishman + Co., Amalgamate Dance Company, Kaley Pruitt Dance, and Kinetic Architecture. He has also had the opportunity to work with such prestigious artists as Gerri Houlihan, Dan Wagoner, Suzanne Farrell, Bulayoung Pagalava, Alan Danielson, and Clay Taliaferro. In his spare time, along with being the Marketing Associate for Third Rail Projects, Joshua freelances as a technologist, collaborating in various technological mediums including web design, graphic design, and video editing. His past clients include Shen Wei, Shen Wei Dance Arts, Julie Tussey, Zvi Gotheiner, Ariane Reinhart, and the Pema Chödrön Foundation. (For more information visit joshuareaver.com)

Edward Rice (Third Rail Projects’ Business Manager/Performer), originally from the suburbs of Chicago, holds a BS and MFA in Dance from Illinois State University and the University of Iowa, respectively. He has performed with Jennifer Kayle + Company, The Brian Brooks Moving Company, Stone Depot Dance Lab, Jody Oberfelder Dance Projects, Amber Sloan, Elizabeth Dishman, Laura Peterson Choreography, Benn Rasmussen’s Ardent August, Alexandra Beller/Dances, and in Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More. He has taught throughout the Mid-West, at Dance New Amsterdam, The New School, The International Dance Festival in Bytom, Poland and The Open Look Festival in St. Petersburg, Russia. His choreography received honors at American College Dance Festival, and has been performed throughout the Mid-West, in NYC at Dixon Place, and as part of Synethesia by Electric Pear Productions. He is Producer of RoofTop Dance and Company Manager for Alexandra Beller/Dances.

Christina Robson (Performer) is a Brooklyn based performer. She currently works with David Dorfman Dance, Sean Curran Company, Monica Bill Barnes, Heidi Henderson, Kendra Portier, and The Space We Make. In addition to performing, Christina also teaches at Gibney Dance Center. She is originally from Massachusetts and received a BA from Roger Williams University.

Kim Savarino (Performer) is a Brooklyn based performer. She has worked with The Foundry, Lauren Ree Slone, and Harper Addison and performed works by Jawole Zollar, Sharon Eyal, Shen Wei and Alex Ketley. In addition to performing, Kim is the program assistant at the MAP Fund and a research associate at ARTS Action Research. She trained at the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance and graduated with a BFA in dance, Summa Cum Laude with honors, from Florida State University.

Alex M. Schell (Performer) is a native North Carolinian, performer, choreographer, and eternal optimist. In addition to performing with Third Rail Projects, Alex dances with Katie Rose McLaughlin and Dan O’Neil and is a dancer/rehearsal director for MATYCHAK (Nathalie Matychak, artistic director). She began dabbling in choreography in 2013 and is now the creator and dancemaker for AMS Project, a collaborative performance group based in New York. She has also had the great pleasure of performing and choreographing several movement-inspired short films and music videos. Alex graduated with honors from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts with a BFA in Dance in 2010. You can find out more at – alexmschell.wix.com/create

Samara Seligsohn (Assistant Stage Manager Swing), originally from Fort Lauderdale, FL, now lives in NYC doing freelance work in Dance and Theater production/administration and working as a professional tap dancer. After graduating from Barnard College with a BA in Dance, she worked for two years as the Assistant Artist Manager at Divine Rhythm Productions. She has also been a production assistant on Jason Samuel Smith & Co.’s Chasing the Bird at the Joyce Theater, and on The American Tap Dance Foundations Rhythm is Our Business at the 14th Street Y. She has also been part of the run crew for dance festival concerts around the country. Samara currently dances in Nicholas Young’s SoundMovement Dance Company and Chloe Arnold’s Apt#33, while also teaching tap on faculty at Steps on Broadway.

Jessy Smith (Performer) is an American dancer, choreographer, and site-specific performance artist. Born and raised in Hudson, Ohio, she graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. For Third Rail Projects, Jessy has been a collaborating artist in Yolk, Memento Mori, and House No 17. Her bubbly trio, The Good to Go Girls, present their vintage dance skits at NYC nightlife venues including Joe’s Pub, The BOXNYC, Webster Hall, and The Spring Street Social Society. Smith has also developed herself as a solo artist under the pseudonym Poppy Tart. Poppy landed two major roles in 2014, as a re-occurring burlesque performer on season 5 of Boardwalk Empire and also as a dancer in “Cheek to Cheek Live,” a PBS great masters series starring Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga. about.me/SmithJessy

Elisabeth Svenningsen (Assistant Stage Manager Swing/Scenic Associate) is a recent graduate of Skidmore College. She is a freelance scenic artist and designer working in the tri-state area. After studying studio art and theater, her work spans fine art pieces to scenic designs.

Samuel Swanton (Performer) is a Brooklyn based movement and performance artist. Originally from Holden, Maine, he attended the Walnut Hill School and recieved his BFA in dance from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Beyond Third Rail Projects, Samuel can be seen performing with Dusan Tynek Dance Theatre, Pat Catterson, and Lindy Fines. He also produces his own work and was a 2014 Chez Bushwick Artist in Residence.

Simon Thomas-Train (Performer) began his dance training as a freshman cross-country ski recruit at Middlebury College in 2005. Ever-fascinated by the intersection of the artist and the athlete, he has doggedly pursued dance wherever he can since graduation in 2009. He has had the pleasure of working with Satya Roosens/Studio Eclipse, Big Action Performance Ensemble, Attack Theatre, Alexandra Beller, Kendra Portier, Rosie Herrera Dance Theater, Red Dirt Dance, and David Dorfman Dance. Simon creates his own blend of collaborative multidisciplinary performance under the name The Space We Make with his co-director Caitlin Scholl.

Niko Tsocanos (Third Rail Projects’ Development Associate/Performer) is a performer and choreographer in dance and theater. He received his BA from Bennington College in 2011. Niko is a co-director of BOOM BAT GESTURE Performance Group, a multi-disciplinary collective making work for stage and installation, with whom he has created and performed in Red Light/Green Light/Blue Light/Biped…(or BIRDWAVE), Cthulhu’s House of Z, ZOOM Thousand Time, and Screen Eyed Baby Ice. Niko has also had the pleasure to work with Susan Sgorbati and Elliot Caplan, Dishman + Co, alex|xan: the Median Movement, Annette Herwander, Bradley Teal Ellis, Lindsey Dietz Marchant, Becky Radway Dance Projects, and Catherine Galasso.

Carlton Cyrus Ward (Performer/Technical Director) is a dancer, circus performer, and actor from the woods of northern Vermont. He moved to New York City 14 years ago to study theater at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Carlton recently performed with The Artigiani Troupe in their inaugural production, That Beautiful Laugh, at LaMama and Phantom Limb’s 69? S in BAM’s Next Wave festival 2011. He currently works with Circus Amok, Becky Radway Dance Projects, and El Gato Teatro. In the past he has worked with Christopher Williams, Jody Oberfelder Dance Projects, Ateh Theater Company, Proto-type Theater Inc., Freefall, Alex Bag, Maureen Fleming, and Gary Indiana. Carlton teaches circus skills and clowning at NYU.

Madeline Wilcox (Performer), a native to Arizona, is a Brooklyn based dance artist. In addition to Third Rail Projects, she is currently working with Sarah Michelson and Jody Oberfelder. Since moving to New York she has had the pleasure of performing for Suzanne Beahrs, Jillian Peña, Sarah Michelson, Jessica Gaynor, Kendra Portier, Ashleigh Leite, and the Median Movement, among others. She has also worked with composer Robert Ashley and director Fast Forward in the experimental opera, That Morning Thing. Graduating Summa Cum Laude, Madeline holds a BFA in Dance Performance and a BS in Communication from Arizona State University.

Collaborating Designers

Sean Hagerty (Sound Designer, Composer, Violinist) specializes in music and electronics for theater and dance. He created the music and sound design for Steampunk Haunted House (’11). Other collaborations include electric string-trio music for Rachel Klein’s Symphony of Shadows (Dixon Place); Chasing the Train, an interactive tap performance with Andrew Nemr (Webster Hall, Issue Project Room); Chopin’s Minute Waltz, for electronics and piano (Le Poisson Rouge); and string music for Brian Chung’s Sunrise in the Quantum Realm (Baryshnikov Arts Center) and for Norte Maar’s Ballet Y Bushwick. Sean performs solo violin-looping concerts regularly at Urban Stages, and has played rock and folk music at CBGB’s gallery, The Living Room, Rockwood Music Hall, Southpaw, and Bowery Ballroom, amongst others. seanhagerty.com.

Brian Olin (Collaborating Musician) currently resides in Brooklyn, playing live in alleys, basements, warehouses, backyards, garages, restaurants, skateparks, living rooms, bookstores, motels, and the occasional music venue. Brian has performed all around the United States and in Quebec City.

Isaiah Singer (Collaborating Musician) is a songwriter, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist who has played in numerous bands and projects, including Genesis P-Orridge’s PTV3, Freedom Haters, and Bryin Dall’s Fourth Sign. His own rock band, The Seventh Word, is set to release its new album Gold and Gravity in 2012, and his pop project The New Hot is working on songs for an album release next year. More info at seventhword.com.

Kryssy Wright (Lighting Design) is a lighting designer living in Brooklyn. She has traveled nationally with MAP Intermedia and Civilians. In New York City, she has worked with many directors, choreographers and artists at Danspace Project, the Chocolate Factory, Abrons Art Center, the WIld Project, and many others, and is available as a designer, technician, technical director, and more. Kryssy spends most of her days at the Abrons Art Center, and is also active with Avant Media. She began working with Third Rail Projects in 2009.

Karen Young (Costume Design) has designed costumes for numerous dance and video art projects in New York and internationally. She has collaborated with many renowned video artists including David Michalek’s “Slow Dancing” and “Portraits in Dramatic Time” (currently at Lincoln Center Festival), Matthew Barney’s “Cremaster 5” and “Cremaster 1”, and Eve Sussman and the Rufus Corporation’s “89 Seconds at Alcazar” and “The Rape of the Sabine Women”. In addition to her work with Third Rail Projects, her design work for dance can be seen in the repertoires of the Martha Graham Dance Company, American Ballet Theater, Benjamin Millepied, New York City Ballet, Pascal Rioult, Karole Armitage, Elisa Monte, Keigwin + Company, Noémie Lafrance, and Pam Tanowitz, among many others. karenyoungcostume.com.